I love the movie and dig the format, but a few of the Gremlins figures had problems rendering them un-playable. With 5 points of articulation, Gremlin Stripe has a frozen arm - this is kind of problematic for me, as "joints can move" is tops on my short list of things a figure must be able to do. Some boiling water (and basically dismantling his arms) got him moving again, but it's an extra step that may be more trouble than it is worth for you if a PVC figure, a NECA figure, or some other format is available to you. (The Pop! is quite nice.)

For ten bucks, you get everything a young boy in the 1980s might want - a monster and a chainsaw. He shares a body with the Cinema Gremlin and Bandit Gremlin, so really what you're after here are the unique head and power tool. Since Stripe is basically the movie's chief villain, this is probably the version you're going to want the most.

The 2-inch terror has a unique head with a fluffy (plastic) mop on his head, plus the requisite white teeth and blood-red mouth. Light green stripes on his arms join other markings to make this a pretty decent little figure - it lacks the gloss of real 1980s toys (it was cast in another color and painted green) but aside from that, it's decent. It's unquestionably more detailed than anything from 30 years ago, so really all that's "retro" about this one are his size and articulation. The arms, legs, and neck all move with the restrictions this line has usually presented - the way that they're manufactured is conducive to problems. The green paint added to the joints on the limbs contributes to their inability to move at times. The can be fixed, but not always - so be careful.

Given that this figure is smaller than a Glyos figure (with fewer parts) $10 can be tough to swallow - you could buy the Pop! Vinyl Gremlins figures, some of the Japanese figures, and even some of the 1980s figures are still rather cheap. If you can waltz into a store and snag this for $10, or prefer the packaging, this is a great buy. If you just want a toy Gremlin of some sort, the Cinema one is a bit more amusing and the other toys are, in general, a little more interesting.

Addendum: For those of you familiar with the Boiling Water Trick, it worked here. The joints of this (and the other) figures were indeed frozen by the friction caused by the paint - it wouldn't move. By dropping the figures in a glass of boiling water for about a minute (as the water cooled), it was possible to pop the limbs and heads out of the socket and put it back together - now the joints on all 3 figures are functioning and unfrozen. Due to the frustration of opening a toy and being unable to perform a simple function like "move arm," though, I still advise caution. You shouldn't have to use tricks to make a new toy work.

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